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National | Auckland

Nine new Covid-19 cases, 10 people in hospital

There are nine new cases of Covid-19 reported in New Zealand today, bringing the total number of active cases to 123.

The Ministry of Health says the new cases include eight linked to the Auckland cluster and one imported case.

Of the new cases in the cluster, one had contact with another confirmed case on bus transport.

"Four are household contacts of confirmed cases. One has had contact with a confirmed case at a church. Two are workplace contacts – one of these is the probable case,” the ministry said in a statement.

The imported case was picked up at the Four Points by Sheraton managed quarantine hotel in Auckland at routine testing on day 12.

The person who has tested positive is a woman in her 30s. the ministry said it would provide an update on where she travelled from when the information was available.

This brings the total number of confirmed cases to 1,332. Nineteen of the active cases are imported while 104 are linked to the Auckland cluster.

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Close contacts

The ministry says their contact tracing team have identified 2,300 close contacts of cases, of which 2,249 have been contacted and are self-isolating.

“We are in the process of contacting the rest,” the ministry says.

There are 151 people linked to the Auckland cluster who have been moved into the Auckland quarantine facility.

“This includes 82 people who have tested positive for Covid-19 and their household contacts.”

People in hospital

Today there are 10 people in hospital who have Covid-19. Three people are in Auckland City Hospital, four people in Middlemore, two people in North Shore Hospital and one person in Waikato Hospital.

“The new person in Auckland City Hospital is linked to the community cluster and was transferred from the quarantine facility late on Sunday. Eight people are on a ward, and two people in Middlemore are in ICU,” says the ministry.

Hospitals in Auckland continue to manage Covid-19 patients using appropriate infection prevention and control protocols ensuring hospitals remain safe for patients, visitors and staff.

Tests

Laboratories completed 4,589 tests yesterday, bringing the total number of tests completed to date to 697,070.

In the last seven days, labs have processed nearly 100,000 tests for Covid-19.

People who have symptoms of Covid-19, or who are concerned about potential exposure, should continue to seek advice from their GP or Healthline on getting a test.